Strengthening India’s TB Elimination Strategy

Context:

Dr.SoumyaSwaminathan, Principal Advisor to the National TB Elimination Programme (NTEP), has proposed adopting district-level TB death audits—similar to maternal death reviews—to reduce TB mortality and achieve India’s TB elimination goals.

India’s TB Burden and Elimination Targets

India accounts for the world’s highest number of TB cases.
As per the India TB Report 2024, TB mortality has declined from 35 per 1,00,000 in 2015 to 22 per 1,00,000 currently.
India aims to eliminate TB by 2025, five years ahead of the UN SDG Target (2030).

TB Death Audit Proposal

Modelled on maternal death audits.
Proposed to be led by District Collectors with participation from public health departments or medical colleges.
Objective: Identify systemic gaps in service delivery and socioeconomic causes behind TB mortality.

Key Programmes and Interventions

National TB Elimination Programme (NTEP) under the Ministry of Health.
NikshayMitraYojana: Aims to provide nutritional and financial support to TB patients.
Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT): Amount increased from ?500 to ?1,000/month to improve nutrition and treatment adherence.
KasanoiErappilaThittam (TN-KET): Tamil Nadu’s ‘TB Death-Free Project’ successfully triaged patients and improved inpatient care.
100-day TB Elimination Campaign: Focuses on expanding upfront molecular diagnostics and handheld X-ray screening with AI algorithms.

Emerging Best Practices

Portable Handheld X-rays with AI Integration: Boosted case notification by 10–12% in Mumbai.
Upfront Molecular Testing: Enhanced early detection and drug-resistance profiling.
Nutrition-based Protection (RATIONS Trial): Demonstrated ~50% reduction in secondary TB infections through nutritional support.

Challenges in TB Control

High TB fatality rates in the 25–55 age group.
Social determinants: malnutrition, diabetes, alcoholism, and delayed care-seeking.
Subclinical TB constitutes nearly 40–50% of cases, which symptom-based screening fails to detect.

Supreme Court's Intervention in Bihar SIR

Polity & Governance

Empowering India’s Youth

Economy

Recurring Infrastructure Failures

Economy Infrastructure

Protecting the Right to Vote

Polity & Governance

FATF Report Flags Pakistan Terror Funding

International Relations International Organization

Ashadha Purnima Celebrated at Sarnath

Indian Culture